Chapter 58: The Delivery Pokémon's Misfortune

Defeating the Mega Blastoise seemed simple, but in reality, even a slight mistake, or if Zhi Mi had chosen to use Water Pulse under rain during the final clash of beams, the battle would likely have dragged on much longer.

Zhi Mi loosened his scarf slightly to breathe the fresh air after the rain, walked over to Luo Mu and Master Master Haidai who were conversing, and said with a calm expression, "That was truly a battle full of art, Luo Mu; thank you for accepting my challenge."

Luo Mu was explaining the origin of his Tera Orb to a curious Master Master Haidai when he heard Zhi Mi speak; turning sideways to look at Zhi Mi, who still maintained his grace, he smiled and said, "It's nothing; both Cangyan Cangyan Rengui and I gained quite a lot from battling you."

"It is my honor," Zhi Mi bowed slightly, a habit he had always kept, then looked at Luo Mu and Master Master Haidai with curiosity and asked, "From your discussion just now, is that strange phenomenon that appeared on Cangyan Cangyan Rengui's body during the battle called Terastallization?"

Master Master Haidai laughed heartily, saying, "Yes! That is a specialty of the Paldea region~"

"What a fitting name; after Terastallizing, a Pokémon's body resembles a gem filled with artistic flair, sparkling and shining."

Master Master Haidai greatly agreed with Zhi Mi's description, then, as if remembering something, he asked, "Speaking of which... why was your Blastoise able to evolve again during the battle just now?"

Thinking that Master Master Haidai had already told him about the existence of Terastallization, Zhi Mi did not hold back: "That is called Mega Evolution; through the power of an item, one can awaken the hidden potential within a Pokémon."

Luo Mu did not interrupt their exchange, after all, he had a certain understanding of both Terastallization and Mega Evolution.

After chatting briefly, both Zhi Mi and Master Master Haidai turned their gazes toward Luo Mu.

Feeling slightly unnerved by their stares, Luo Mu listened as Zhi Mi chuckled lightly and said, "Today's battle made me realize the shortcomings between myself and Blastoise; once again, thank you for accepting my abrupt invitation."

"Also, if you have the chance in the future, please come visit the Kalos region; at that time, I will spare no effort in treating you to both cuisine and battles at my restaurant."

"Can I take this as a second battle invitation?" Luo Mu smiled, nodded in agreement, and asked, "Does Mr. Zhi Mi intend to leave Paldea?"

Master Master Haidai shook his head, saying, "No, he still needs to stay with me at the restaurant to jointly research recipes for a period of time."

Zhi Mi tacitly agreed with Master Master Haidai's answer.

Luo Mu nodded in understanding, summoned his Dragonite, then scooped up Wenxiang Wenxiang Kedou and the small wooden box containing the damaged teapot, sat firmly on Dragonite's back, and said casually, "Since matters are settled, I will take my leave here; if I don't return soon, the sky will turn dark."

Zhi Mi and Master Master Haidai nodded, watching as Dragonite carried Luo Mu and Wenxiang Wenxiang Kedou rising slowly, finally disappearing into the boundless horizon.

Stroking his chin, Zhi Mi said with great interest, "This Dragonite... seems very strong as well."

Master Master Haidai let out a heroic laugh: "Hahaha, Little Dragonite is indeed very strong; rather, it could be said that none of the main Pokémon in young Luo Mu's team are obviously weak."

"... Is that so."

Zhi Mi's gaze grew somewhat deep; if Luo Mu had sent out this Dragonite earlier instead of Cangyan Cangyan Rengui, who was countered by Mega Blastoise, to what extent would the battle have developed?

Young Lady Cynthia was right; there are countless powerhouses in other regions, and one should not rest on one's laurels in the Kalos region, enjoying the prestige of the Elite Four while becoming dull.

After leaving Cascarrafa City, Dragonite maintained a relatively stable speed as it flew toward Cortondo Town.

Gradually, the sky noticeably darkened, dark clouds began to gather, and the whimpering, howling wind sounded slightly mournful, causing Wenxiang Wenxiang Kedou to shrink uneasily into Luo Mu's embrace.

Although it wanted to manipulate such rain clouds after growing up, observing them from such a close distance was still somewhat frightening.

Dragonite looked up at the sky, its honest eyes hiding a hint of contemplation.

Even during its Hakuryu stage, it had been very skilled at sensing and controlling the weather.

Although after evolving into Dragonite and losing those three blue orbs that helped it manipulate the weather, that somewhat special ability had weakened considerably.

But Dragonite could still vaguely feel that the scale of this rain would be massive.

Worried about encountering a torrential downpour before reaching the farm, Dragonite silently increased its flying speed.

Unlike the Rain Dance released by Blastoise which only covered the battlefield and surrounding space, these dark clouds covering everywhere Luo Mu's gaze could reach were clearly a harbinger of an imminent heavy rain or even a storm.

Luo Mu felt somewhat fortunate that he hadn't sown new seeds today; otherwise, those new seeds would likely have drowned in what was obviously stormy weather.

Although there were Pokémon on the farm that knew the move Sunny Day, relying solely on the power of ordinary Pokémon, even those who had reached the Champion realm, made resisting nature slightly difficult.

Perhaps, conversely, the slightly weaker Moltres would have the ability to disperse the storm.

Luo Mu was about to speak and ask Dragonite to speed up to reach the farm as soon as possible, but Dragonite didn't need Luo Mu's reminder at all, having already silently increased its flying speed, leaving Luo Mu momentarily with an inexplicable sense of melancholy that his child had grown up.

Gently stroking the back of Wenxiang Wenxiang Kedou, who feared natural weather phenomena, Luo Mu wanted to say something to ease the atmosphere.

Just then, the two antennae on top of Dragonite's head began to tremble as if sensing something; Dragonite suddenly looked up at the sky, its gaze piercing through the dark clouds to look into the deeper essence.

Electric-type energy was gathering within the dark clouds... Not good, must decrease flight altitude!

"Bo-wu!" (Hold on tight!)

Now there was no time to worry about a ladylike descent; Dragonite roared loudly to remind Luo Mu to hold on tight, and feeling a pair of arms clutching it tightly, Dragonite directly folded its wings, ceased generating lift, and plummeted downward in free fall.

Wild Pokémon like Dragonite, which were extremely sensitive to weather and possessed great strength, were ultimately rare; light began to flash between the dark clouds, and lightning and thunder, brewed to their limit, gathered within them.

Beyond the limit, as if a god were descending punishment upon the world, first came a deafening explosion, then lightning slashed across the sky, illuminating the gloomy heavens as bright as day.

A bird Pokémon, mostly red in body with white feathers covering its face and chest, was flying in the sky; it did not possess Dragonite's excellent perception and experience, nor was it as lucky as other flying Pokémon that had been frightened into lowering their flight altitude.

A bolt of lightning struck it squarely, neither missing nor deviating.

Before the Delivery Pokémon could even react, its consciousness was completely severed, and its normally proud feathers turned pitch black from burning.

Having lost consciousness, the Delivery Pokémon could no longer maintain its flying posture, its body emitting black smoke as it fell toward the ground in free fall.